On 1/31/13, Banco Santander SA's 6.80% Non-Cumulative Series 4 Guaranteed Preferred Securities (NYSE: SAN.PRA) will trade ex-dividend, for its quarterly dividend of $0.425, payable on 2/21/13. As a percentage of SAN.PRA's recent share price of $25.50, this dividend works out to approximately 1.67%, so look for shares of SAN.PRA to trade 1.67% lower — all else being equal — when SAN.PRA shares open for trading on 1/31/13. On an annualized basis, the current yield is approximately 6.66%, which compares to an average yield of 5.57% in the "Financial" preferred stock category, according to Preferred Stock Channel.

As of last close, SAN.PRA was trading at a 2.20% premium to its liquidation preference amount, versus the average premium of 2.86% in the "Financial" category. Investors should keep in mind that the shares are not cumulative, meaning that in the event of a missed payment, the company does not have to pay the balance of missed dividends to preferred shareholders before resuming a common dividend.

The chart below shows the one year performance of SAN.PRA shares, versus SAN:

Below is a dividend history chart for SAN.PRA, showing historical dividends prior to the most recent $0.425 on Banco Santander SA's 6.80% Non-Cumulative Series 4 Guaranteed Preferred Securities:

In Tuesday trading, Banco Santander SA's 6.80% Non-Cumulative Series 4 Guaranteed Preferred Securities (NYSE: SAN.PRA) is currently down about 0.2% on the day, while the common shares (NYSE: SAN) are off about 0.5%.